The Tech and Learning 100@30

1/1/0001 12:00:00 AM

By Matt Bolch, Illustrations By Jay Bevenour

AS PART OF OUR 30TH-ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION,Tech & Learning has compiled the first two of three lists
of the 100 most important people: those leaders from the PAST who have shaped today’s edtech environment,
and those leaders from the PRESENT who have been instrumental in the creation and advancement of the use of
technology in education. These first 60 honorees appeared earlier this year. We now feature leaders in our last and
possibly most challenging list, the FUTURE. These include students doing ground-breaking work in edtech, young
entrepreneurs shaping the future of edtech, and those teachers changing classrooms around the nation. Let us
know what you think at www.techlearning.com/30thanniversary.

Elsa Eiriksdottir

Elsa Eiriksdottir is a graduate student in engineering psychology at Georgia
Tech who works in the Problem Solving and Educational Technology
Lab. Her focus is on understanding the capabilities and limitations of
human performance from the perspective of perception, cognition, and
movement control and applying this knowledge to the design of systems
and environments that accommodate those capabilities and limitations.
The goal of her dissertation is to uncover how the learning situation
and instructional materials can be constructed to create conditions that
enhance learning and transfer.

Ntiedo “Nt” Etuk

Ntiedo “Nt” Etuk co-founded and serves
as CEO at Tabula Digita Inc., creator of
the award-winning DimensionM educational
video game series for math. The company
focuses on creating technology-based
tools for the K-12 market. The company
recently unveiled the DimensionU Learning
System, educational video games centered
on core K-12 subjects such as math, literacy,
science, and history. Etuk is a 2010 Henry
Crown Fellow at the Aspen Institute and a
member of the Aspen Institute’s Nigeria
Leadership Initiative program.

Allen V. Robnett

Allen V. Robnett’s students at Gallatin High, just outside Nashville, Tennessee, believe he is out of this world. For his
innovative courses, which build science, math, and technology skills through hands-on learning, Robnett has been
named the 2010 recipient of the Alan Shepard Technology in Education Award. His Astronomy and Space Exploration
class features an in-school planetarium and a rooftop observatory, while the Aviation Theory and Practice class
combines actual textbook and simulator pilot training. Robnett developed both courses from scratch and procured
grants and in-kind donations to obtain flight simulators, a planetarium, and an observatory. Read more

Matthew Peterson

Matthew Peterson co-founded the nonprofit
MIND Research Institute, which develops
math instructional software and systems
as well as conducting basic neuroscientific,
mathematics, and education research.
Peterson created the institute’s ST Math
computer software, which teaches teaches
math to students using MIND’s unique
non-language-based approach. Peterson,
who has a doctorate in neuroscience from
UC Berkeley, is the author of Interactive
QuickTime: Authoring Wired Media.

Keith R Bujak

Keith R Bujak has researched how
mobile phones and text messaging
can support learning in areas where
Internet connections are limited.
Results of a pilot study conducted
at Georgia Tech’s Problem Solving
and Educational Technology Lab
showed that complex interactions
are possible. Participants found the
system easy to understand and a
useful learning tool. Bujak is an
engineering psychology doctoral
candidate at the university and his
current interests include active, constructive, and interactive learning,
mobile learning, and cognitive science-based physics education.

Andy Crozier

Andy Crozier proves that innovation takes place every day in
classrooms across the world. Crozier, coordinator of Digital
Learning Technology at the Grant Wood Area Education Agency in
Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was named an ISTE Emerging Leader for 2010.
Grant Wood AEA offers webinars supporting assistive technology
and instructional, and online resources for the classroom. Crozier
is a Google Certified Teacher and an Apple Distinguished Educator. Read more

Stephen Shapiro

Stephen Shapiro is the president of
SchoolFusion, which provides Web site
and communications solutions for K-12
education, serving more than 5,000 schools
and 1 million users in 44 states. Shapiro
provides overall direction of SchoolFusion
solutions, features, and technology
developments. He discovered his interest
in education technology while examining
the impact of the Internet on rural eastern
Africa while in a master’s program at the
University of Colorado. Starting from the perspective of a student,
Stephen and his team built, “What we wish we had as a student.”
Including a next generation calendar solution which then evolved into
a Learning Management Solution and finally, SchoolFusion, a Website
solution that includes all the above.

Dan Meyer

Although Dan Meyer is taking a break from teaching high school math to study
for a doctorate in education at Stanford University, his passion for teaching
shines bright. Meyer’s proposal for a new way to teach math, presented as part
of TEDxNYED, has had nearly 100,000 views on YouTube and has been reposted
on many education sites. TEDxNYED brought together educators, innovators,
and idealists earlier this year to share their vision of education. His specific
interests include building ideal learning experiences for students through
curriculum design and answering questions about teacher education, such as
how they learn and how to best teach them to teach. Read more

Mathew A. Powers

Mathew A. Powers brings a wide variety of gaming
and eLearning strategies to his lecturer role in
the School in Infomatics at the Indiana University-
Purdue University Indianapolis (UIPUI). His
teachings focus on 2D and 3D animation, virtual
reality environment construction, and Web design,
specializing in character, environment, narrative,
and game creation. Powers also works as a Flash
media developer at Option Six, which develops
eLearning solutions. At Option Six, he has designed
and created e-Learning applications and animations
for clients such as Microsoft, Lilly, and Toyota.

Julie LaChance

Julie LaChance, technology facilitator at Northwest Cabarrus (NC) High School,
was named ISTE’s Outstanding Young Educator for 2010. In 2009, she was named
North Carolina Instructional Technology Educator of the Year. LaChance has
worked closely with school improvement teams and others to create a modern
computer lab with SMART boards, animation stations, podcasting centers, iPod
cart and full working lab. She founded NC Second Life Educators, an educational
group in Second Life dedicated to helping teachers use the virtual world in the
classroom and to sharing general educational ideas, and EDTECH Retreat, which
assists with educational endeavors in Second Life. Read more

Richard Byrne

High school social studies teacher Richard Byrne founded the Free Technology for Teachers Web site (www.
freetech4teachers.com), which provides educators with ideas and instruction for using free, Web-based resources to
improve student engagement and learning. The blog and learning resources site, founded in 2007, has grown to more than
50,000 unique visitors a month. Byrne, who teaches in a rural Maine district, believes that technology integration in the
classroom is key to students learning and creating collaboratively with their immediate peers and their peers around the
world, according to an interview with the SimpleTechIntegration Web site. Byrne also is a lecturer on technology topics.

Eric Sheninger

Eric Sheninger, principal at New Milford High in New
Jersey, is not afraid to to show America his strengths and
weaknesses. When he was a first-year principal at just 33,
he was featured on TruTV’s The Principal’s Office, a reality
show about the trials and tribulations of leading a school. His
appearance on that and CW Network’s OfficeMax Schooled
brought more than $70,000 to the school to purchase
technology items and other needed school supplies. The
Google Certified Teacher also has tapped into the community
through “The Principal’s Report,” a monthly Web report
on student honors, facility improvements, professional
development, and classroom innovations.

Mary Beth Hertz

Mary Beth Hertz served as
co-founder and co-organizer
at Edcamp Philly (www.edcampphilly.org), described
as an “unconference,” a free,
informal gathering of teachers
and administrators focused on
K-12 education. A computer
teacher and technology
teacher leader at Guion S.
Bluford Elementary School in
Philadelphia, Hertz was named a 2010 Emerging Leader by ISTE.
Her ideal school would encourage open dialogue, student-centered
learning, and high levels of staff collaboration with each other and the
community at large using social media tools. Students would express
themselves through blogs and collaborate using wikis. Hertz also
blogs at Philly Teacher (http://philly-teacher.blogspot.com/).

Buffy Hamilton

Buffy Hamilton is a media specialist at Creekview High School in
Canton, Georgia, and the founding librarian at The Unquiet Library
(http://theunquietlibrary.wordpress.com/), a blog that chronicles
her experience at what she calls a “Library 2.0.” She is the author
of the Media 21 Capstone Project, which helped students learn
about social media and cloud computing tools for learning and as
a way to build personal learning networks, and which is used in
the Cherokee County School District. Hamilton also serves as a
keynote speaker, workshop consultant, and adjunct trainer.

Philip Tan Boon
Yew

Philip Tan Boon Yew is the executive
director for the U.S. operations of
the Singapore-MIT GAMBIT Game
Lab, a game research initiative
hosted at the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology. He is
concurrently a project manager for
the Media Development Authority
of Singapore. He has served as a
member of the steering committee
of the Singapore chapter of the
International Game Developers Association. He has produced and
designed PC online games at The Education Arcade, a research group
at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology that studied and created
educational games. His specialties include digital, live-action, and
tabletop game design, production, and management.

Marleigh Norton

Marleigh Norton is lead interaction designer for the
Singapore-MIT GAMBIT Game Lab, a collaboration
between the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and
the government of Singapore to explore new directions
for the development of games as a medium. GAMBIT
emphasizes the creation of video game prototypes to
demonstrate the group’s research as a complement
to traditional academic publishing. She designed
educational-augmented reality games at the MIT
Scheller Teacher Education Program and worked as
an interaction designer for the Waterford Research
Institute. Norton’s specialties include human-computer
interaction, user interface design, educational games,
games for children, location-based gaming, augmented
reality, and experimental input devices.

Thuan Nguyen

Thuan Nguyen has built his career at the Kent (WA)
School District the way the district developed its technology
infrastructure—one piece at a time from a firm
foundation. He recently was named chief information
and operations officer, and played a key role in not only
beefing up district technology initiatives, but completing
those projects with an eye toward reining in costs.
Major projects include an HR and payroll conversion, two
secondary technology academies and a large laptop initiative.
Another facet to his leadership is promoting technology
upgrades to the staff and community. In 2008, he
was named a Computerworld Honors Program laureate. Read more

Steven Mudrick

Steven Mudrick is a middle school teacher and
technology specialist at the Theater Arts Production
Company School (TAPCo) in the Bronx, NY. For the
fourth consecutive year students under his direction
have received the J.P. Morgan Chase “Multimedia in the
Classroom” Award, given to schools that demonstrate
creative use of classroom technology. At this year’s
New York Institute of Technology commencement,
Mudrick received the John J. Theobald Graduate
Achievement Award in Instructional Technology. He
models the integration of technology in his classroom
and uses multimedia as a tool to engage and excite his
students about learning.

Evan Allred

Dysart Unified School District (AZ) continues to make
strides incorporating technology into classrooms under
the guidance of Evan Allred, director of information
technology. Allred, named Technology Director
of the Year by the Arizona Technology in Education
Association in 2004, recently led the completion of the
district’s three-year education technology plan. Student
technology literacy is assessed twice a year on a small
sampling of students. Employees have VPN access
through home computers, accessing district resources
through a link on the district Web site. More than 250
teachers have completed the Intel Essentials Course
and the Intel Teach Thinking Course, and the district is
developing online course capacity through Moodle. Read more

Jennifer Corriero and Michael Furdyk

Jennifer Corriero and Michael Furdyk are co-founders of TakingITGlobal (TIG),
a Canadian nonprofit that aims to inspire, inform, and involve youth interested
in global issues and creating positive change. TIG’s mission is to create a
collaborative learning community that provides young people global opportunities,
cross-cultural connections, and meaningful participation in decision-making by
leveraging technology, creating a cohesive youth movement, and championing
the role of youth as key stakeholders. Corriero, who serves as executive director,
leverages her experience developing programs for youth that leverage technology,
collaboration, and entrepreneurship. Furdyk, director of technology, works with
the TIG ed education program and has made presentations to more than 50,000
educators about the importance of engaging students and integrating technology
and global perspectives into the classroom. Read more

Troy Hicks

Troy Hicks, assistant professor at Central Michigan University, is the author
of The Digital Writing Workshop published in 2009. The English professor is
involved in Project WRITE (Writing, Reading, Inquiry and Technology Education).
In 2007, 40 teachers formed a learning community to examine student work
with the intent of identifying pedagogies and materials that improve adolescent
literacy and thoughtful integration of technology. Hicks also is director of the
Chippewa River Writing Project, a site of the National Writing Project that
supports a summer institute for K-16 teachers of writing. Here he delves into
ways that teachers can positively implement technology (i.e., podcasting, wikis,
etc.) into their classrooms.

Erin E. Reilly

Erin E. Reilly is co-founder at and served on the board of directors at Platform
Shoes Forum, a nonprofit that helps young women pursue careers in science,
technology, engineering and math (STEM). She is co-creator of PSF’s model
program Zoey’s Room, a national online community for 10-14-year-old girls,
encouraging their creativity in STEM subjects which won her a Leaders in
Learning Award from Cable in the Classroom. Currently, Reilly is the research
director for Project New Media Literacies of MIT’s Comparative Media Studies
Department, an initiative that supports research and innovative teaching
methods to engage today’s digital kids. Read more

Jay Bachhuber

Jay Bachhuber is a researcher at the
Center for Children and Technology,
part of the Education Development
Center. With support from the Bill and
Linda Gates Foundation, Bachhuber and
CCT are developing handheld games
and research that target struggling
middle-grade readers, whose limited
comprehension skills often hold them
back from full exploration of difficult
content. Before joining CCT, he
worked as a freelance game designer,
curriculum designer and writer on a
number of domestic and international
educational gaming projects. He’s also
managed an after-school program in
New York City where students studied
game design and partnered with a game
studio to create an award-winning video
game about Hurricane Katrina. Read more

Ryan Imbriale

As assistant principal at Perry Hall
High School in Baltimore County (MD)
Public Schools, Ryan Imbriale works to
integrate technology into the classroom
for both students and teachers. A key
success was the formation of an action
team to bring technology into instruction,
data management, and classroom
management, including video streaming,
a ConnectEd system for parents,
and a swipe system for attendance
information. Imbriale teaches graduate
education classes for The John Hopkins
University and is a consultant for The
Opportunity Group, which assists school
personnel bring 21st century tools into
the classroom. He is a member of ISTE’s
Board of Directors.

Tony Mangiacapre

Tony Mangiacapre, high school physics
teacher at St. Mary’s High School in
Manhasset, NY, has combined his degree
in instructional technology with modern
communications to enhance his own
classroom instruction and incorporate
new methods of learning and sharing
instructional strategies with teachers
worldwide. He has taken the entire
New York State physics curriculum and
put it on a Web site that contains his
daily lesson plans with graphics, Flash
animation, simulations, interactive
games and exams, and YouTube videos.
These lesson plans are shared with
teachers throughout the United States,
England, Scotland, Australia, New
Zealand and other countries. Read more.

Eric Langhorst

Eric Langhorst brings technology to the students
he teaches at South Valley (MO) Junior High
School. That technology includes “studycasts,”
audio Podcasting technology to help students
prepare for tests, as well as blogging as both
an education and communications tool. He also
presents workshops for teachers in the district
on Podcasting, blogging, online assessment,
e-mail and other classroom applications.
Langhorst is on the adjunct faculty at Park
University, where he teaches a graduate course
on”Technology for the Classroom.” He recently
was named by Kansas City business magazine Ingram’s as member of its 2010
class of “40 Under Forty,” a list of rising young business and civic leaders.

Lenny Schad

Katy (TX) Independent School District uses the latest technology to instruct students,
thanks to Lenny Schad, chief information officer. The district has a 3:1
student to computer ratio and recently piloted mobile learning devices among
fifth-graders who used the devices both at school and at home for such subjects
as math, science and language arts. Technology is used to boost student achievement,
requiring a mindset change among many teachers. In order to keep pace
with technology-native students, the technology department is reaching out to parents
through open houses centered on technology students use in their classes.

Brian Nichols

For transforming Hidenwood Elementary School
in Newport News, VA, from one facing sanctions
into one that exceeded AYP benchmarks for two
consecutive years, ASCD named Principal Brian
Nichols its 2010 Outstanding Young Educator. Nichols
has a reputation for turning around troubled schools
through the effective use of technology and innovating
teaching practices. Hidenwood had no classroom
technology, and now 100 percent of classrooms have
such tools as interactive whiteboards, projectors
and document cameras. He also created a virtual
data wall for each student to track progress that’s been emulated in the district,
allowing individualized instruction for students who aren’t meeting benchmarks.

Lisa Johnson

Lisa Johnson, technology resource teacher in the Jefferson County (KY) Public
School District, created The 180 Degree Classroom, in which teacher and students
switch roles. High school students create “teaching modules” for content
traditionally taught by the teacher. While students prepare and learn from the
teaching modules, the teacher focuses on providing classroom experiences that
incorporate the lessons learned through the modules.

Jill Hobson

As director of education technology for
Forsyth County (GA) Schools, Jill Hobson
oversees the district’s online learning
management system and Web content
management system. She works closely
with the Academics and Accountability
division to promote instructional
technology that accelerates student
learning. Under Hobson, the district
created a blended approach to online
learning that reduces (and in some cases
eliminates) the need for textbooks.
Hobson serves as the president and
founding member of the Georgia Society
for Instructional Technology (G-STE) and
is an active member of the Consortium
for School Networking and the Georgia
K12 CTO Council.

Matt Federoff

Matt Federoff surfs on the leading
edge of technology in the Vail (AZ)
School District. Federoff, director of
technology, led one of the nation’s early
efforts to connect schools using wireless
technology, later providing wireless
access at each school site. In 2005, he
led the opening of Empire High School,
called the first textbook-free school in
the United States. Students are issued
laptops, and technology helps form the
core of the learning experience, much
of which is self-directed. He was named
the 2005 Arizona Technology Director of
the Year and currently is involved in the
Beyond Textbooks Initiative, extending
the Empire methodology across all
grade levels.

Karl Fisch

Karl Fisch, director of technology at
Arapahoe High School in Centennial,
CO, is glad to be back in the classroom
this fall, albeit teaching just one section
of Algebra. He’s been at the school
since the early ‘90s, transitioning into
the full-time technology position at the
school 12 years ago before returning
to the classroom because of budget
cutbacks. Through grants Fisch has
received, Arapahoe High is a 1:1 laptop
school, creating blogs, Podcasts and
writing Web-based “textbooks” for
their science courses. Fisch believes
in staff development, introducing new
instructional and technology tools. He
writes a blog, The Fischbowl, at http://thefischbowl.blogspot.com/.